René Peña-Govea
René Peña-Govea is a Chicana writer, educator, and musician born and raised in San Francisco. René published her first poem and released her first album at age fifteen, and since then, has been named a Publishers Weekly Spring 2026 Writer to Watch, an inaugural Bay Beats musician, a YBCA-100 Honoree, a Las Musas Hermana, an SFPL Brown-Handler Resident, a Creative-in-Residence at The Ruby, and a Nomadic Literary awardee. She performs music with three generations of La Familia Peña-Govea and as René y Familia. ESTELA, UNDROWNING is her first novel.
Where to find me at the festival
May 30, 2026 -
Bold Strokes: Portraits of Chicana Voices in YA Literature
